Tape Recovery
Mouldy & Damaged Tape Recovery
Fluffy, musty, or squeaking tapes that won't play? A mouldy tape is very often not lost. We clean and recover damaged VHS and camcorder tapes in Cambridge, then digitise what's on them.
If your old tapes have been sitting in a shed, garage or wardrobe here in the Waikato, there's a fair chance the damp has got to them. Our humidity is hard on magnetic tape — white or grey fluff on the reel, a musty smell, or a tape that squeaks and jams in the machine are all signs of mould or "sticky-shed syndrome." It looks alarming, but please don't throw the tape away, and don't try to force it through a VCR — that's exactly when footage is lost for good.
The good news is that a mouldy tape is very often recoverable. We carefully clean the tape by hand, treat it so it runs smoothly again, and only then digitise what's on it — capturing the footage before any more of it disappears. We've rescued wedding videos, first birthdays and family holidays that their owners had completely written off.
Because every tape is different, we start with a free, no-obligation assessment and tell you honestly what's recoverable before we touch a thing. Once your tape is playing again, we digitise it just like any other — see our VHS & camcorder digitising for how that works. If you've got a mouldy tape you thought was gone, get in touch — it may not be lost at all.
What we can recover
Free assessment
Every damaged tape is different, so we look at yours before quoting. No charge to assess, no obligation, and if it can't be saved we'll tell you straight. Free local pickup across Cambridge and the wider Waikato.
Delivery options
Google Drive download — Free
USB stick (32GB) — From $30
DVD — $15
Why act now
The longer a mouldy tape sits, the further the mould spreads and the more the magnetic layer breaks down. In a climate as damp as the Waikato's, that can be the difference between a clean recovery and a tape that's gone for good. The sooner we see it, the better the result.